


Through the Forest

by maidens_wanderlust



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: F/M, Gen, I just liked pretty art and wanted to write something for it XP, Some Fluff, Some light angst, and trying to balance lance's canon personality with that of a seelie fae was fun to play with, but definitely gen, flirtyrobot, honestly this fic is more gen than anything, minor shatt mention, nymph pidge, nymph/fairy au, pance, pidgance, plance, seelie fae lance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-07
Updated: 2019-03-07
Packaged: 2019-11-13 07:12:16
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,427
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18027149
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/maidens_wanderlust/pseuds/maidens_wanderlust
Summary: Why a fairy would bother with a nymph? Katie doesn't know. But she will win that challenge and she will get her glasses back.





	Through the Forest

**Author's Note:**

> Hi! This isn't my first time writing Pidge and Lance but it's my first time posting anything of them in public. Inspired by krissychan2's artwork on Tumblr. 
> 
> http;//krissychan2.tumblr.com/post/181282175303/nearly-2-years-ago-i-got-a-request-for

_“I caught you, you sneaky little bastard!”_

_The fairy in her hands didn’t even try to struggle from her grasp. Instead he licked the remaining berry juice off the corner of his lips and grinned at her. “So you have, little nymph.”_

_She narrowed her eyes at him. “Why are you pestering me now?”_

_“Because I wanted to play a game.”_

_“And what makes you think I’ll play along?”_

_For a second his blue eyes flickered a neon shade of blue as his grin grew wider. “Because I can tell you’re not the type to run away from a challenge.”_

_She bristled. Knowing that his “game” was actually a challenge sparked her curiosity. And judging by the smug look on his face, he knew he got her. Damn him. “What kind of challenge?”_

_“What is my name?”_

_“Excuse me?”_

_“You heard me,” he said, a small chuckle escaping his throat. He still made no attempt to escape. “What is my name?”_

_She frowned. Everyone, even the humans, knew the ramifications of giving a fairy your true name, but few knew what happened if you learn the name of the fairy. If you knew their name, you gained control over them. She smirked. There was only one reason he would offer this challenge: he didn’t expect her to win. Well, she would show him just to spite him. She released him. “I accept your challenge.”_

_“Excellent!” he exclaimed. He stretched his limbs and cracked his small knuckles. “For accepting my challenge, I’ll give you one hint.”_

_She folded her arms. “Go on.”_

_“I am a weapon.”_

_She raised an eyebrow. He dusted his hands._

_“You don’t need me to tell you you’re smart,” he said. “In fact, my kin would probably say I've said too much. Until then.” He bowed and vanished._

-

That was a month ago. She figured out shortly that he was being metaphorical; that he shared the name of an actual weapon. Why his eyes sparkled when she told him that, she didn’t know. After that, there was little time for speculating because he kept pulling pranks on the nymphs. He especially made it a habit to snag more fruits out of her baskets and fly around until she caught him. Other times he would leave unwanted treasure at her favorite tree trunk. That she could handle.

But stealing her glasses? The ones that her brother gave her after Allura healed his eyesight and left to embark on a journey with Shiro? She was going to break her pinky in his ass.

She lost sight of him but she knew he was nearby. He always was. She cupped her hands and shouted, “Give those glasses back, Ax!!”

“Heh heh. Not my name, nymph.”

She turned at the sound of his voice and found him resting on a nearby tree trunk. The glasses rested under his arm. He cocked his head to the side with a smug look on his face. “Not gonna use your cloaking spell like last time?”

She scoffed. “Where’s the fun in that?” She launched at him and he disappeared before she could grab him, skidding across the grass. His laugh surrounded her. She sat up and dusted the grass off her green dress. “You are dead when I catch you!”

“I don’t doubt that,” he said.

She growled and ran after the sound, weaving around trees and knocking away branches and bushes. The easy thing to do was to ignore him. Let him get bored and bring it back of his own accord. She had done that before on a bad day. But this was the first time he flew outside of the nymphs’ part of the forest and only gods knew what he was up to. His voice drifted further and further away and only when she stopped to look back did she notice how far he had taken her. 

A bush of strange flowers caught the corners of her eyes and she knelt down to get a better look at them. Knowing that she didn’t know about this part of the forest, the same forest she had lived all her life in, made her realize just how small her comfort zone was. She poked the flower. It was neon purple with a white center. Red freckles sprinkled over the petals. The leaves were soft as fur. A part of her wanted to take this plant home and give it to her mother; maybe she would know what kind of plant this was.

“I see you found the night fae plant.”

And just like that, she remembered why she was out so far and sprung at him. Instead of disappearing, he simply dodged. He dangled the glasses at her. “For a second I thought you gave up.”

She smirked. “I’ll never give up.”

She slammed her hands against the ground and her eyes changed from honey brown to neon green. She began chanting under her breath. At home, she only had to use this spell once. It was the spell that made the trees bend to her will for life. They do her bidding and in turn she promised to look after them. A beneficial contract. Soon she could hear their voices in her head and they pledged allegiance to her. 

_We’ll help you catch this fairy._

_Would you like to know his name? He’s here frequently._

_No_ , she told them. _That part is between him and me._

_As you wish._

She smiled at the fairy. “I hope you’re ready, Mace.”

He slipped the glasses back under his arm and grinned. “That’s not my name, but keep trying.” He flew off. “And I’m always ready! Don’t think I don’t know what you did!”

At least he didn’t disappear this time.

She sprinted after him. When it seemed like he was getting further away, she leapt into the air and a tree extended its branch, wrapping around her torso and flinging her to the next tree that would get her closer. She reached out her hand and another tree caught her by her wrist, swinging her to the next. He was still within sight. The trees that weren’t tossing her tried to catch him themselves with their branches or overwhelm him with leaves, but he dodged them with ease. 

No matter.

With him distracted by them, she could focus on which way he would turn and plan ahead to get closer. The trees were starting to spread thin so she had to act fast. When it looked like he was going to dodge closer to where the trees were tossing her, she leapt and reached for him. At the last second he ascended and she lost her footing. A vine caught her before her face would collide with the ground.

“So close!” he taunted. 

“You are so irritating!” she said. The vine gently let her down. It knew soon there wasn’t going to be enough to help her. A hundred feet away she saw the cliff. “Seriously, why my glasses? They’re too big for you!”

“Who knows? Maybe I wanted them for decoration.”

“Bow…”

“Not my name,” he said. He studied them. “These are made out of bark, right? Maybe I could use them for a ritual.”

“You wouldn’t dare!”

He hovered backward. “Who’s to say?”

“Javelin!!”

For a second he looked stunned but it was gone as soon as it came. He grinned. He moved faster. “You really are getting close.”

She quickened her pace. She was close, huh? And if he shared a name with a weapon and ‘javelin’ was close, then his name had to be a synonym. “Spear.”

“Nope.”

“Bayonet,” she said. “Bay for short.”

“Tragically, no.”

“Shaft.”

He snickered. That earned him a rock flying in his direction. With each guess he moved faster and she raced after him. 

“You are not throwing those glasses over the cliff!!”

“Maybe. Maybe not.”

“Pike!!”

“Ah! That’s actually my nickname!” he said. “Keep trying, nymph! I know you’ll figure it out!”

_Why is he doing this?_

They were at the edge of the cliff. Well, she stood at the edge. He, on the other hand, was floating with all the land below him. He hovered far enough to hold the glasses out of her reach. 

_He has to be bluffing_ , she thought. _If he’s not, I really will kill him!_ “Spear!”

He held the glasses by the rim. “You already guessed that.”

She sputtered. She ran a hand through her unruly hair. Just a few more guesses. She had to get it right. She closed her eyes until one more word popped into her head.

“Lance,” she said. She opened her eyes. “Your name has to be Lance.”

He was inches away from her face, wearing a soft smile. “You got it.”

She let out a breath and snatched the glasses out of his loose grasp. She slipped them back on. Of course it made no difference for her vision, with the lens out and all, but the familiar weight soothed her face. “Gods…”

He chuckled. “Congratulations, nymph. You won the game.” He gestured behind him. “And we’re just in time.”

“Time for what?”

He motioned behind him again. She didn’t see anything special. She saw lush green mountains, birds flying in the distance, and a long river reflecting blinding light off the setting sun. 

The setting sun.

 _Wait_ , she thought. 

He lowered until his feet touched the ground. He turned his back on her and hugged his knees to his chest, transparent wings fluttering behind his back. 

She got what she wanted. She could leave. 

-

_“Was that the fairy just now?"_

_“Yeah, but he's harmless.”_

_Colleen clicked her tongue. “There’s no such thing as a harmless fairy, Katie. You have to be careful with them, especially the Seelie fae.”_

_Katie frowned. “I thought the fae from the Unseelie court were the ones to fear.”_

_“They’re both capable of doing terrible things, love,” Colleen said. She closed the distance between them and took a stray leaf out of Katie’s hair. “But who do you think is more cruel? The ones who admit they’re dangerous or the ones who hide it behind a smile?”_

-

She could have left, yet she found herself taking a seat next to him. She folded her legs. With her nymphian eyes she could see the green fireflies starting to glow in the distance. The edge of mountains started to lose its orange hue as the sun descended. Once it disappeared for good, will-o-wisps began to appear as well. Gods save any human traveling tonight. She sighed and gave Lance’s ear a half-hearted flick.

“Ow! What the heck?!”

“Shut up. You deserved it.”

He rubbed the back of his head. “Can’t argue with that.” 

“You could’ve just asked, you know.”

He gave her a coy grin. “And where’s the fun in that?”

Of course. She rolled her eyes and lied on her back, tucking her hands under her head. She wasn’t much for stargazing, but every once in a while she would do so with either her brother or with Allura and Romelle. Sometimes all together, including Shiro. The sight of a bunch of nymphs with a lone centaur was something to behold. She wondered what her brother and now brother-in-law were up to. Were they gazing at the stars too?

Weight on her chest snapped her out of her thoughts.

“What are you thinking about?”

She swatted at him and he stepped back, laughing at the gesture. “Just thinking about my brother.”

“Ah.”

“He’s the one who gave me these glasses.”

Lance was still. “...Oh.” He got off her chest and sat next to her head. “I wasn’t going to throw them over the cliff.”

“I believe you,” she said. She shrugged. “It’s not like I need them to see; it just keeps him with me while he’s away.”

“Is he coming back?”

“Before winter comes, yes.”

“Then you’re lucky. At least he’s coming back.”

She turned her head to get a good look at him. He stared at the orange sash around his torso, clutching it with one tiny hand. He took a breath and shrugged, letting out a forced laugh. “Whatever. Are you ready to go back?”

She wouldn't have minded staying a little longer. Ask him what was going through his head. But he was retreating and she could understand the need to close off. She would respect that. “I am.”

She stood up and dusted the grass off the back of her dress. It dawned on her that this was over. He no longer had a reason to pester her. He would probably move on to another nymph or creature that would give him the time of day. Why did the thought make her stomach squirm? Slowly, she reached behind her head and pulled her hair to the side. Familiar weight rested on her bare shoulder.

“I won’t take your glasses again,” he said, “but I make no promise on the fruit.” 

That shouldn't have made her smile but it did. And Seelie or Unseelie, one of the first things she learned about him in the past month was that he was many things: a pest, a prankster, and a flirt, but he wasn’t a liar. 

He relaxed against her head. “On the way back I can tell you more about the plants from before. The petals glow in the dark.”

“Really?”

“Yep, I think your kin would find them useful. Though I’m sure your mother knows about them.”

She remembered what he called it earlier, so she doubt her mother would have anything to do with it. But he didn't have to know that. “Maybe she does, but I'd still like to stop there on the way back.”

“Okay.”

She took her time walking. The trees swayed in her direction, offering assistance with getting home. She silently told them she was in good hands. Thoughts warred in her head. She could imagine her mother now urging her to cut off future contact with this fairy. She also knew she wouldn't like what she was going to do next.

“Pidge.”

She felt him lift his head slightly. “Hm?”

“Pidge,” she repeated. “It’s what my brother and friends call me. So you can call me Pidge.”

“Oh...well.” He relaxed against her head again. “Hey, Pidge.”

She leaned her head against him. “Hey, Lance.”

Did she make a mistake? Her mother would say so. Her father too. Maybe Matt and the others would trust her a little bit more to look after herself, but did she trust herself?

Yes. Yes, she did.

**Author's Note:**

> If you made it this far, thank you for reading!


End file.
